Greg Russo is an American screenwriter and director. He is best known for writing the 2021 film adaptation of ''Mortal Kombat''. He is also set to write a sequel to the 2017 film ''Death Note'', adaptations of ''F.E.A.R.'' '' Saints Row'', '' Space Invaders'' and ''

System Shock ''System Shock'' is a 1994 first-person action-adventure video game developed by LookingGlass Technologies and published by Origin Systems. It was directed by Doug Church with Warren Spector serving as producer. The game is set aboard a space s ...

'', which he will also direct.

Career

Russo's first break came in 2010, when he optioned the contained thriller spec script "Down" to Relativity Media. He followed up "Down" in October 2010 with the highly received action thriller spec "I-95" which placed #3 overall with 97 votes on the year end HIT LIST - a list of the best un-produced original screenplays in Hollywood hosted by The Tracking Board. "I-95" was later changed to "Autobahn" and optioned by Inferno Entertainment. In 2011, Russo sold an original action/thriller pitch entitled "Black Ice" to Alloy Entertainment. He also worked on the

Paramount Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to: Entertainment and music companies * Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS. The following busin ...

action film "Heatseekers" produced by

Michael Bay Michael Benjamin Bay (born February 17, 1965) is an American film director and producer. He is best known for making big-budget, high-concept action films characterized by fast cutting, stylistic cinematography and visuals, and extensive use of ...

. In 2012, Russo was hired to write the action film "High Speed" for Act of Valor director

Scott Waugh Scott Waugh (born 1970 or 1971) is an American film director, producer, and former stunt performer, best known for directing the 2012 war film ''Act of Valor'' with Mike McCoy (filmmaker), Mike McCoy. He also directed the ''Need for Speed (fil ...

. In 2013, Russo was hired by Relativity Media to adapt the sci-fi/action

Arcana Arcana may refer to: Music * Arcana (American band), an American jazz band * Arcana (Swedish band), a Swedish dark wave band * Arcana (record label), a French classical record label * Arcana (album), ''Arcana'' (album), a 2001 album by Edenbridge ...

comic "Continuum" into a feature film. Later that year, Universal Pictures hired Russo to adapt its action/spy film ''It Takes a Thief'' based on the TV series of the same name. In the summer of 2014, Russo sold the original TV pilot "Chop Shop" to

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

with Chris Morgan producing. In 2015, New Line Cinema hired Russo to pen disaster thriller "Category 6" a sequel to the film ''Into the Storm'' In November 2016, it was announced that Russo would be penning an adaptation of the 1992 video game ''Mortal Kombat'' for New Line Cinema, directed by

Simon McQuoid Simon McQuoid is an Australian filmmaker, best known for directing the 2021 reboot of ''Mortal Kombat''. McQuoid's background was in directing commercials. In May 2022, ''Deadline Deadline(s) or The Deadline(s) may refer to: * Time limit, a n ...

and produced by James Wan. The film was released on April 23, 2021, and grossed $83.7 million worldwide. The film currently holds an 86% audience approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. In May 2017, Russo was initially attached as writer for '' Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City'', but confirmed in November 2018 that he was no longer involved with the project. In was also revealed that Russo was hired by

Sony Pictures Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Sony Pictures or SPE, and formerly known as Columbia Pictures Entertainment, Inc.) is an American diversified multinational mass media and entertainment studio Conglomerate (company), conglom ...

to adapt the anime '' Robotech'' into a feature film. In May 2018, Russo was hired to write an adaptation of the 2005 video game ''F.E.A.R.'' Also in 2018, Russo was hired by New Line Cinema to pen an adaptation of the DC Comics title ''Highwaymen''. In August 2018, it was announced that Russo would be penning the sequel to the 2017 American adaptation of ''Death Note'' for Netflix. Russo also affirmed that the film will be more faithful to the source material. In April 2019, Russo became attached to write an adaptation of the '' Saints Row'' franchise, with

F. Gary Gray Felix Gary Gray (born July 17, 1969) is an Americans, American film director, film producer, and music video director. Gray began his career as a director on numerous critically acclaimed and award-winning music videos, including "It Was a Good ...

set to direct. Later in July, Russo was attached to write an adaptation of '' Space Invaders'' for New Line Cinema. In January 2022, it was announced that Russo would direct, write and executive produce a television adaptation of ''

'' for the streaming service Binge. The series will mark Russo's directorial debut. In 2023, Russo preemptively sold an original sci-fi thriller pitch titled "Seismic" to Netflix with 21 Laps producing.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Russo, Greg American male screenwriters American television directors Living people Year of birth missing (living people)